


Autumn Nights

by consultingviking



Series: The Alchemist and the Baker [2]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: ALL THE FLUFF, All The Love, Autumn, Awkward Romance, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Crushes, Cute, Dorks in Love, F/M, Falling In Love, Festivals, First Dates, First Kiss, First Love, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Mutual Pining, Pining, Quirin being an awkward dad, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Teen Crush, Teen Romance, Teenagers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Unresolved Romantic Tension, but not for long, fall - Freeform, he's trying his best, it's really cute okay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-21
Updated: 2020-05-21
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:53:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24307735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/consultingviking/pseuds/consultingviking
Summary: “Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, but falling in love with you was beyond my control.”Takes place sometime between "Great Expotations" and "Queen for a Day." Varian and Sophie have always been best friends, but an evening spent attending Corona’s fall festival could turn their friendship into something more.
Relationships: Varian (Disney) & Original Female Character(s), Varian (Disney)/Original Character(s), Varian (Disney)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Alchemist and the Baker [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1754893
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	Autumn Nights

**Author's Note:**

> Another story from me? And so soon? Hey, quarantine affects all of us differently, but after a nearly three-year hiatus, I'm just grateful to be able to create regularly again.
> 
> This is the semi-sequel to my earlier story, "Love Potion," and part of a series involving Varian's friendship and budding relationship with my original Tangled character, Sophie Flanagan. You can find her profile and other art about her on my DeviantArt account here:
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/bluesilverpandas/art/Tangled-OC-Sophie-Flanagan-761614650
> 
> A quick note: This is a Varian x OC story, but it does contain some references to Varian's crush on Cassandra and why he ultimately decides not to pursue her. It's fairly short and not the main focus, but if that sort of thing bothers you, feel free to skip.

Varian let out a breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead. There, his latest prototype was finished, and he was done for the day. He’d been working on his newest attempt to bring hot water to his village, and he was _certain_ that this would finally be it.

But that could wait for one more day. Not only was Varian was far enough along that he felt comfortable taking a break, but he also had plans tonight. Corona’s annual fall festival was happening, and he planned on attending the event with Sophie. She’d done a lot of the baking for the festival in the castle kitchen, and Varian was eager to try what she made.

He was so excited that he skipped downstairs and towards the front door of his home, narrowly missing a collision with his father at the foot of the stairs.

“Ah!” he cried, and then winced. “Sorry, dad.”

“That’s alright, son,” Quirin said with a sigh. He was more than used to Varian’s antics by now, but he’d had such a stressful day that he unfortunately didn’t have the patience to deal with it at the moment. Instead, he glanced down at his son. “Where are you off to in such a hurry?”

“The fall festival,” said Varian. “I’m meeting Sophie there.”

“Oh, that’s right!” said Quirin. “I almost forgot the festival was starting today.” He gave Varian a once-over. “Is that what you’re wearing?”

“Uh, yeah?” Varian raised an eyebrow at his father. “What else would I wear?”

“Well, I just thought,” Quirin began. “Sophie is a young _lady._ ”

“Yeah?”

“All I’m saying is that usually when you go out with a young lady,” Quirin paused. “Well, you tend to dress up a bit.”

“Dad!” Varian laughed. “It’s _Sophie_! She doesn’t care!”

“Nevertheless,” Quirin shifted his stance awkwardly. “Maybe you ought to consider leaving the apron and gloves at home this time.”

“Really?” Varian sighed and rolled his eyes. “All right, dad.”

He begrudgingly pulled the heavy black gloves off his hands and set them down on one of the nearby chairs of the kitchen table. Once that was done, he also untied the strings of his apron and draped it over the very same chair. Varian again turned towards his father.

“Better?” he asked.

Quirin nodded. “Much.”

“Good,” said Varian. “Uh, can I go now? I don’t want to be late meeting Sophie.”

“Of course, of course,” Quirin waved his hand dismissively. “You kids have fun now.”

“Thanks, dad!”

“Be careful, Varian.”

“I will, dad!”

“ _Behave yourself,_ son.”

“I _will_ , dad!”

Varian smiled awkwardly at his father and gave him a little wave before walking out the front door as fast as he could. Success! Now it was time to go to the festival.

As he began the walk from Old Corona village to the main kingdom and festival grounds, Varian felt strangely light without the additional weight of his work apron and thick gloves. He knew Sophie didn’t care much whether he wore them around or not, but for some reason, his father had. Something about Sophie being a young lady and the two of them going out.

Wait, did his father think this was a _date?_

Varian furrowed his brow as the thought made its way into his mind. A date with Sophie – was that what this was? As his father would say, they had already “gone out” several times already, but of course they would do that. They were _friends._ In all the times Varian and Sophie had hung out together, they laughed, joked, and talked about anything and everything that came to mind. Varian knew he could always come to Sophie about whatever he was thinking or feeling at the time, and he knew she’d do the same for him.

But could he talk to her about _this?_

As he started crossing the bridge that connected Old Corona to the main kingdom, Varian found himself thinking about another person he had previously wanted to “go out” with – Cassandra. He’d actually spoken to her earlier in the week about the festival, secretly hoping that she’d bring up going together or even just hanging out, but she brushed him off, making some excuse about being with Rapunzel that night and not caring about festivals much in the first place. To tell the truth, Varian wasn’t surprised.

He was fourteen while Cass was twenty-two. It hadn’t seemed that big of an age difference when Varian started liking her, but the more he thought about it, the more it was true. She was in an entirely different stage of life than he was, and even if that wasn’t the case, she didn’t seem interested in romance anyways. Plus, Varian was finding that the more he got to know Cassandra as a friend, the more he found his crush on her disappearing – and reappearing for someone else.

Varian decided to set aside those thoughts as he began approaching the festival grounds. The sun was just beginning to set, and the crowds were already arriving in full force. Shopkeepers were setting up a variety of stalls to sell their wares, while attendants stood idly by the games where people would compete to win prizes. A band had set up nearby and started playing, and the smell of baked goods was already thick and heavy in the air.

Varian smiled with pride when he realized that Sophie’s creations were somewhere among those delicious smelling treats. They had previously agreed to meet by the fountain near the center of town, so that was where he decided to head. Along the way, he squinted his eyes and scanned the crowds for his best friend, just in case he should bump into her early. He was so busy looking for her that he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings and nearly walked right into someone directly in his path.

“Whoops!” he said. “Sorry, miss!”

Varian turned around to apologize properly to the person he bumped into, only to come face to face with Sophie herself. At least, she _looked_ like Sophie – but very different.

She had changed out of her usual green work dress and apron into a simple short-sleeved white blouse and forest green skirt, complete with a pair of matching flats. Her chestnut brown hair was free from its customary braid, and now hung loosely around her shoulders. For the first time, Varian also noticed just how _long_ it was too. It went all the way down past her chest and shone underneath the various lights scattered around the festival grounds.

She looked _beautiful._

Sophie opened her mouth to answer his apology, but then broke into a huge smile when she saw who he was. “Hi, Varian!”

“Hey,” Varian smiled, but suddenly felt very self-conscious about his own appearance. He’d been working in his lab all day, so he was sure he looked a little messy in comparison to Sophie. Maybe forgoing the apron and gloves was a good idea after all.

As it was, Sophie gestured towards his ensemble. “No apron today?” she asked.

“Uh, nope,” said Varian. “My dad suggested I leave it.”

“What for?” Sophie asked.

Varian shrugged. “No clue.”

Sophie smiled and shook her head, before noticing Varian’s lack of gloves. She took hold of his arm and pointed towards his hand.

“No gloves either?” she asked.

“Nope,” Varian’s face flushed and his stomach fluttered unexpectedly at the contact. “Also my dad’s idea.”

Sophie raised her eyebrow. “Who are you and what have you done with Varian?”

He laughed at that. “Don’t worry, I’m keeping him somewhere safe.”

“I should hope so,” Sophie shook Varian’s wrist a little. “Because I don’t think his hands have seen the light of day in years! You ought to be careful.”

“I will be,” Varian grinned and pulled back to get a better look at Sophie. “You look great.”

“Thank you!” Sophie reached down to smooth her skirt. “My other dress got filthy while I was baking for the festival, and I didn’t have time to wash it. I think the last time I even wore this outfit was to church… about a year ago.”

“It matches your eyes,” Varian blurted out suddenly, then immediately closed his mouth. Where had _that_ come from?!

“Does it now?” Sophie raised an eyebrow towards him and smiled.

“Well, yeah,” Varian stuttered a little as he searched for an explanation. “Because it’s a green skirt, and you have green eyes, and… uh, that’s really all I got.”

Varian’s face flushed red in embarrassment, but Sophie simply laughed.

“Come on,” she said. “Let’s go explore the festival!”

Varian smiled with relief and began following after her. But before he did, he quickly stole a glance into a mirror that belonged to a nearby shopkeeper’s stall selling leather goods. He smoothed down his unruly hair beneath his goggles and straightened the fabric of his shirt, taking care to get rid of any excess dust and debris from his earlier work. Why hadn’t he taken his father’s advice and changed his clothes?!

* * *

Despite Varian’s supposed wardrobe malfunction, the rest of the night went smoothly from there. He and Sophie spent the next several hours wandering around the festival and seeing all that there was to see. They visited numerous shopkeeper’s stalls, where they did everything from try on funny, oversized hats to get their fortunes told. Varian was far from impressed with his generic prediction, but when he asked Sophie about hers, she giggled and refused to answer.

The entire time they were together, the nervous feeling that Varian had earlier in the evening almost completely evaporated, allowing him to completely enjoy just spending time with Sophie. They talked, joked, and laughed like usual, so much so that Varian nearly forgot why he was anxious in the first place.

The fluttery feeling didn’t make a full return until later that night, when the festival was nearing its close. Against all odds, Sophie and Varian managed to try several of the baked goods that she had a hand in producing earlier that day, save for just one from a stall set up near the docks. Lucky for them, they managed to snag the very last two, and were now sitting on a grassy bank overlooking the water to enjoy it.

Varian glanced down at the chocolate cinnamon croissant he now held in his hand. “And you’re sure this is the best one?” he asked Sophie.

“Positive,” she said. “And they’re also my favorites.”

“Then why didn’t we come here first?” Varian teased.

Sophie laughed. “Haven’t you ever heard of saving the best for last?”

“If you insist,” Varian chuckled and took a bite of his croissant. As he’d expected, it tasted _amazing,_ and it was _definitely_ his favorite dessert of the night.

Sophie smiled when she saw his face. “I told you so!”

“Yes, you did,” Varian rolled his eyes but smiled back at her. “And it’s delicious.”

“I’m glad you think so,” said Sophie, her mouth full of croissant. “I was so worried it would be a flop.”

“From you?” Varian shook his head. “Not possible.”

“You’d be surprised how picky people can be.”

“Then people are idiots,” shrugged Varian. “Because you’re amazing.”

“Aw, thanks,” Sophie smiled as she finished the last bite of her croissant. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

“Thanks,” Varian smiled, and then frowned. “I’m glad _somebody_ thinks so.”

“People don’t always understand,” said Sophie sympathetically. “And when they don’t understand, that makes them nervous.”

“I just want to make my mark on Corona, you know?” Varian hugged his knees to his chest and rested his head on top of them. “Do something that people will remember, long after I’m gone,” he paused. “And make my father proud of me.”

“He _is_ proud of you, Varian,” Sophie moved closer towards her friend to meet his gaze.

Varian frowned. “He has a funny way of showing it.”

“Sometimes it can be hard for a person to express their true feelings,” said Sophie. “It can be scary for them.”

“How come?”

“Well, for one thing, what if the person you’re talking to ignores you?” asked Sophie. “Or laughs at you? Or they aren’t thinking or feeling the same way that you are, and then it becomes awkward for you both?”

Varian looked up to meet Sophie’s gaze, only for her to turn away quietly and bite her lip. They both knew she wasn’t talking about his father anymore.

After several long moments, Sophie finally looked towards Varian, blinking at him with wide green eyes, and the butterflies returned to his stomach in full force. She didn’t have to say anything else, for there was something in her soft, vulnerable expression that was saying it all for her.

It was at this moment that Varian realized just how _pretty_ Sophie was. Granted, he’d never thought of her as ugly in the first place, but seeing her tonight and being with her like this was causing him to think a lot of things he’d never thought before. Varian was so busy looking at her that he couldn’t help but notice another small detail, which he blurted out without thinking.

“You’ve got chocolate on your face.”

Reaching up towards Sophie’s cheek, Varian brushed away the errant bit of chocolate near her mouth with his thumb. It didn’t escape his notice when the close contact caused her face to flush and grow warm under his touch, and Varian felt his heart speed up in anticipation over what was coming next.

_Saving the best for last._

Before he could lose his nerve or question himself further, Varian leaned in at the same time as Sophie and gently, hesitantly, pressed his lips to hers.

For all the times he’d previously thought about it, Varian had never actually kissed a girl before. At fourteen years old, he knew he was far from behind the curve, and the fact that Sophie was in a similar position was enough to calm his nerves. That being said, with every part of his being, he wanted to do this _right._

Closing his eyes, Varian allowed himself to lean into the kiss a little more, tilting his head slightly for a better angle and resting his hand against Sophie’s cheek. Sophie followed his movements on her side, slightly moving her head and bringing both her hands to rest on his shoulders. Once she did that, Varian gently placed his other hand on her waist (that was okay to do, right?) to pull her a little bit closer into an embrace. For all their combined inexperience, this was really _nice._

A short minute later, Varian decided to pull back first so he could catch his breath. He opened his eyes again to see Sophie still sitting there with pink cheeks and a soft smile on her face directed towards him. Varian smiled back at her and placed his arm around her. Sophie leaned into his touch and moved closer to settle her head contentedly on his shoulder. The pair sat silently for a few moments, gazing out over the water and the view beyond the port of Corona.

“So…” Varian began.

“So,” responded Sophie, causing them both to glance towards each other and laugh. The warm sound made Varian feel relief throughout his entire body, allowing for the remainder of his nerves to dissipate. Afterwards, Sophie turned towards him again.

“What do you want, Varian?” she asked.

“For us?”

Sophie nodded.

“Well…” Varian paused. “I like you.”

Sophie blushed. “I like you too.”

“As more than a friend?”

“Mhmm.”

“Me too.”

“Really?” Sophie looked hopefully at Varian.

He smiled back at her. “I just kissed you, didn’t I?”

“Right,” Sophie blushed, and Varian continued.

“How long?” he asked.

“It’s hard to say,” said Sophie. “It happened so gradually.”

“Me too,” repeated Varian.

“Even with…?” Sophie’s voice trailed off, unsure if she should even ask.

Varian gazed directly into Sophie’s eyes. “I’m over Cassandra, Sophie.”

“I don’t want to stand in the way if-”

Varian leaned forward and cut off Sophie’s sentence by pressing another kiss to her lips. A moment later, he pulled back and spoke again.

“I’m positive.”

Sophie’s eyes widened in surprise, but nonetheless, she smiled in relief towards Varian. She opened her mouth to speak again when a loud explosion suddenly rang out. Looking up towards the sky, Varian and Sophie saw several bursts of color trailing across the darkness.

“Fireworks!” Sophie laughed.

Varian laughed as well. “How appropriate!”

Sophie giggled and leaned in to press one more kiss onto Varian’s cheek. He smiled at her and, wrapping his arms around her from behind, the pair rested back to watch the fireworks together.

They would figure out all the particulars of dating and being in a relationship at a later date. Varian and Sophie had been friends for a long time and knew each other well, and they both wanted the same thing from each other. Neither of them expected to have any trouble, which would make future events all the more complicated for the both of them as they were destined to occur.

For now though, they had this moment and they had each other, and that was all they truly needed.

**Author's Note:**

> Some more notes!
> 
> 1\. In watching the first season of the Tangled series, I never really saw Quirin as being a bad father towards Varian. I characterized him more as being an overworked and stressed out single parent with a lot on his plate who didn't quite know how to handle his son on top of that. Combined with the fact that I don't think he's always comfortable talking about his emotions and you get the awkward dad that I portrayed in this fanfic.
> 
> 2\. Chris Sonnenburg (the show's developer) has previously confirmed that Varian's crush on Cassandra was supposed to be more of an innocent thing that would never lead anywhere, which is why I've given it the treatment I have in this story. However, given the fact that Sophie is fourteen years old and mildly insecure, I thought it made sense for her to worry a bit anyways.
> 
> 3\. Speaking of Sophie, are her and Varian really dating now? Are they not? Idk man, they're two awkward kids who like each other, they'll figure the rest of that stuff out later. Well, until Varian's inevitable descent into villany, that is. But that's a whole other story. *insert maniacal laughter here*


End file.
